AUS vs WI 1st Test: Australia took a slight but important lead of 42 runs against the West Indies at stumps on the second day of the series opener in Kensington Oval on the back of some poor umpiring decisions that overshadowed a thrilling day on a balanced pitch. Since pacers dominated most part of the day and with batters being patient, the second day proved quite important.

The hosts resumed the day at 57/4 while chasing Australia's respectable target of 180 runs. The first session looked promising as skipper Roston Chase and Shai Hope stitched a partnership of 67 runs and ensured that West Indies could have taken a first-innings lead. But due to two controversial third umpire decisions the first session before lunch belonged to Australia.

The first incident occurred when Chase was given out due to lbw in Pat Cummins's over when he had scored 44 runs. The West Indies captain then took a review as he was sure that the ball had edged onto his pads. In the replay, it was shown, that there was a slight deflection but the UltraEdge had inconclusive evidence. Even though there was confusion, the on-field umpire stuck to his decision, and that left Chase frustrated as he went back to the pavilion disappointed after facing 108 balls.

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And then after a few overs, Hope, who had featured in his first Test after four years had edged the ball in Beau Webster's over and Alex Carey took a low catch. In the replay, it was shown that the ball might have touched the ground but the third umpire Adrian Holdstock gave the decision in Australia's favour. Hope got out after scoring a gritty knock of 48 runs and left the host trailing.

"We can only ask the questions, and then it goes to the officials. One went against us, a couple against them. That's what we have technology for" Mitchell Starc told broadcasters during the post-match presentation.

Both these dismissals were decisive and thus stopped the hosts from taking the lead. They were 135/5 till lunch suffered a batting collapse and were bundled out for 190 runs and took a small lead of 10 runs. Cummins and Webster were the pick among the Australian bowlers as they bowled on tight lines and were brilliantly supported by Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon.

The Pat Cummins-left side's second innings started similarly to their first-suffered top-order batting collapse. Opener Usman Khawaja was dismissed by lbw in Alzarri Joseph's over after scoring 15 runs and the youngster Sam Konstas got out after scoring five runs as he was earlier dropped twice by John Campbell and Justin Greaves. Darren Sammy, who is the head coach of West Indies was seen getting irritated due to the number of dropped catches as Sham Joseph's tally went to five.

Josh Inglis was dismissed by Jaydon Seales whereas Cameron Green had edged to Greaves after scoring 15 runs. The visitors were reeling at 92/4 till stumps as Travis Head (26*) and Beau Webster (17*) helped Australia bounce back on a surface that had both seam and bounce and was only going to deteriorate further.

"It's an indifferent wicket. If you bowl the right areas for long enough, there are enough chances. There are a few bare patches, a few grassy ones - so it depends where the ball's pitching" Starc added.

Since the Pat Cummins-; ed side was leading by 82 runs and was on the verge of posting a target of 200 runs, this ongoing march is well-balanced. Considering the tricky surface and the importance of each run scored, significant contributions from batters like Head, Webster, and Alex Carey will play a huge role.

Even though there were some controversial umpiring decisions, the hosts will try to analyze their own dropped chances- both with their fielding and their batting especially when some decisions didn't go in their favor.